SFR Coaxial

And yet, at no time, SFR explains that a coaxial connection will present a lower flow. The company therefore markets at a high price a installation of less good technical quality by presenting it as a “fiber offer”, a “fiber box” and a “very high speed” connection. And this is obviously what is criticized for him by justice. Fortunately, since 2016, the use of the term fiber optic has been regulated by a ministerial decree which logically prevents SFR from selling a partly coaxial connection for a fiber optical connection. A decree against which the operator obviously fought.

Fiber or cable ?

SFR condemned for false optical fiber

Justice has just ordered the operator to clearly inform part of its “fiber” customers that they actually have a termination in coaxial cable. The customers concerned may, if they wish, to terminate their subscription at no cost.

Can an operator sell an offer based on coaxial cable as fiber optic ? Justice has once again been answered no ! At the end of an action launched by Free in 2016, the Paris Court of Appeal condemned SFR, on October 8, to show more clarity on the way in which some of its customers are connected. The magistrates thus validate a decision rendered in 2018 by the Paris Commercial Court. Failing to have managed to repel its execution, SFR had ended up honoring it. But how ! While he was supposed to provide a certain number of information to his “fiber” clients connected by cable, the operator was content to send them a very incomplete letter titled Did you know. In this document, SFR indicated for example that the connection enjoyed by customers was made up of a coaxial cable connected to fiber at the bottom of their building, without specifying that in certain cases, the connection node was in reality more Far, in a street cabinet. Another gap: rather than indicating a flow close to reality, SFR was satisfied with a maximum theoretical speed. As for the possibility of terminating offered by the Commercial Court, SFR had mentioned it at the bottom of the page, in tiny characters.

New mail to send

In his decision, revealed by our colleagues from Capital, The Paris Court of Appeal estimated that SFR had not respected the injunction of the commercial court and ordered it to communicate again to its customers within 3 months, under penalty of a penalty of 500,000 euros per day of delay. SFR will therefore have to return to concerned customers a letter in which he will clearly indicate that their accommodation is connected by a termination in coaxial cable connected to fiber optics, and not to the fiber optics from end to end. But that’s not all. He will also have to provide a certain number of specific indications, such as the distance between the accommodation from the optical connection node (NRO), the number of subscribers connected to this NRO as well as the average flow which it can benefit from off -peak hours and During influx periods. Finally, he will have to clearly indicate to the customer that he is free to terminate his offer immediately and at no cost.

Termination at no cost possible

If the performance of coaxial cable offers marketed by SFR may be enough by a majority of users, SFR should not have suggested that it was an end to end fiber. Moreover, since June 1, 2016, a decree requires operators to indicate, when this is the case, that the connection of the home is not in fiber to the subscriber (FTTH). Customers who will receive SFR’s mail will therefore have, if they wish, the possibility of terminating their offer immediately and free of charge. On the other hand, they will not be able to claim to obtain damages, except to succeed in proving a real financial damage, which is far from being obvious.

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SFR deceived its subscribers by passing the cable for fiber, justice has decided

SFR was sentenced last week to send a letter to its customers connected to its “fiber optic” network with a cable termination. Justice considering that the latter have not been properly informed about the nature of their domestic connection, they will be able to disengage from the operator without costs or delay. A penalty of 500,000 euros per day accompanies this obligation.

This is a matter that has been dragging for several years: Orange and Free have filed a complaint against SFR in 2015 because the Red Carré operator promotes “fiber optic” offers Even with households which are connected in coaxial cable, With the old Numéricable network. The two complainants then claimed that SFR should not have the right to call fiber optic which was not. In January 2018, justice was right to the complainant, believing that SFR was guilty of a “lack of information on the exact characteristics” of their connection. And, above all, the operator had to inform connected customers with a coaxial cable, which they were entitled to terminate their subscription, unilaterally, immediately and without penalty.

SFR obviously appealed this decision, asking the procedure suspensive of the conviction. But justice has taken “the consumer’s party” and ordered the operator to comply with the judgment. SFR therefore sent a newsletter in late 2018 that there are two types of connection: FTTH and FTTB, stating that, in the second case, It is possible that a coaxial connection is used To connect the accommodation with optical fiber and that the length of the cable could be between 100 and 750 meters. In mentions in characters a millimeter and inserted at the bottom of the page, SFR informed customers that wired subscribers could disengage.

A new, clearer letter

Free has therefore returned to the charge by asking SFR further clarifies the commercial speech and announces in a readable character (without the help of a microscope) that cheated customers could terminate their subscription. Last week, A new judgment was thus pronounced against SFR disadvantage, Information revealed by the weekly capital. The operator must send to the customers concerned a letter offering them the right to terminate their subscription. This mail should not be printed in small character. And if the operator drags too much, he will have to pay a penalty of 500,000 euros per day of delay.

This case is very important. Because, there is an obvious lack of respect for the consumer from SFR who tries to assimilate, both with customers and deputies, coaxial connections with fiber optics. By presenting an FTTB connection (Fiber to the Building) similar to an FTTH connection (Fiber to the Home) and arguing that a coaxial connection enters the category of very high speed, SFR hopes to take advantage of the network inherited from the merger with Numéricable which constituted two years ago most of its high speed network. Unfortunately, behind marketing speech, there is a simple truth: The false fiber with coaxial cable does not offer the same flow as an optical fiber.

Deception on goods

And yet, at no time, SFR explains that a coaxial connection will present a lower flow. The company therefore markets at a high price a installation of less good technical quality by presenting it as a “fiber offer”, a “fiber box” and a “very high speed” connection. And this is obviously what is criticized for him by justice. Fortunately, since 2016, the use of the term fiber optic has been regulated by a ministerial decree which logically prevents SFR from selling a partly coaxial connection for a fiber optical connection. A decree against which the operator obviously fought.

For the record, an FTTH link is a 100 %fiber optical connection, from the network node to the subscriber’s home. An FTTB link is an optical fiber link to the foot of the building. From there, another type of cable is used. It is generally a coaxial cable (which is used to provide television services). The port is easily recognizable: this is the one you use to connect your TNT tuner. The coaxial network is an inheritance of Numéricable, whose pangs in access to the Internet early 2000s are still in the memory of many users. Nine million households are connected to very high speed by this network. SFR counts 2 million “very high speed” subscribers, divided into optical fiber, coaxial and 4G boxes.

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